The present invention relates to a robot control apparatus correcting data taught to a robot.
Hitherto, as the teaching method in an industrial robot system (RS) comprising a robot manipulator (RM) and a robot control apparatus, the teaching playback method has been in the mainstream. In the teaching playback method, the operator operates the RM, and teaches positions of plural points where the RM works. The teaching program to operate continuously at the plural teaching points thus taught is registered. According to the teaching program, the RM is operated and works. The RM either passes through or stops temporarily at the teaching points. At the teaching point where the RM stops temporarily, for example, the torch switch of the welding power supply unit can be turned on. In this case, the teaching point where the RM stops temporarily is also an operation point.
It is a feature of the teaching playback method that the RM passes through the teaching point taught by the operator. However, the work installation position as the object of job, or the position taught by the operator can be deviated.
There are two types of position deviation, that is,
the position deviation is significant, and the teaching point must be corrected, or
the position deviation is not so significant, but it is better to correct the teaching point.
Actually, however, when the operator operates the RM and teaches positions of plural points where the RM works, the former case hardly occurs. Most position deviations are the latter case.
In the conventional RS, when a teaching point having such position deviation is found, the operator stops the continuous operation of the RS once, and tries to teach a better position again.
Thus, in the conventional RS, temporary stop of the RS is required. As a result, the productivity of the production line incorporating the RS decreases, while other production lines suffer from effects of time delay. Besides, the operator spent extra time for teaching again.
The present invention is intended to solve these problems. Accordingly, the invention comprises means for correcting the coordinates of teaching point without stopping continuous operation of the RS. By this means of correcting coordinates of teaching points, the robot control apparatus of the invention is capable of working with the RS efficiently without lowering the productivity of the production line.
To solve the problems, the robot control apparatus composed of a control unit and an input unit of the invention comprises:
a. the input unit connected to the control unit for entering teaching points of RM,
b. a storage unit for storing coordinates of teaching points entered from the input unit,
c. the control unit for transmitting the data for operating the RM to the RM, according to the data of teaching points stored in the storage unit, and
d. a changeover unit, provided in the input unit, for changing over modes, that is, an input mode for entering teaching points, an operation mode for operating according to the teaching points, and an in-process correction mode for correcting the teaching point stored in the storage unit according to the data from the input unit during operation of the RS.
During continuous operation of the RS in the operation mode, when deviated teaching points found, the operator switches the changeover unit to the in-process correction mode. In the in-process correction mode, the operator enters data for correcting the teaching point from the input unit. According to the entered data, the control unit processes correction. By this correction, the RM is operated according to the corrected data of teaching point. While the operator is correcting in the in-process correction mode, the RM continues to work without stopping the continuous operation. The RS having the robot control apparatus of the invention operates as described above.